1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle elevator and a lift in or for such a vehicle elevator.
2. Description of Related Art
It is known for such a vehicle elevator to comprise at least one carrier. Such a carrier has a length direction for carrying a load thereon. Vehicles can for instance be driven onto the carrier, or preferably carriers, of a vehicle elevator. The vehicles can then be displaced upward and then downward in order to create space under such a vehicle for maintenance and so on. For the purpose of lifting and/or lowering the carrier use is made in the known vehicle elevators of a lift. The lift is positioned under the carrier.
It is known to make use of diverse types of lift in such vehicle elevators. Use can for instance be made of scissor constructions and half-scissor constructions. In order to provide drive cylinders, pull rods and posts here in good and compact manner for desired operation of the lift, diverse configurations have already been proposed.
Reference is made by way of example to the disclosure of and in FIG. 7 of U.S. Pat. No. 6,213,451.
Diverse assembly elements are here provided on the underside of a carrier or wheel track. Each set of assembly elements serves to enclose therebetween an outer end of an element of the lift, such as a pull rod or a drive cylinder. Each outer end of each of these components must be bearing-mounted between the set of assembly elements, which in the known configuration takes the form of a steel plate or side plate welded on the underside of the wheel track. Furthermore, each outer end of these components must be movable or rotatable in a full range of movement.
Such a configuration has drawbacks.
Such drawbacks are for instance high vertical and horizontal forces on the assembly elements. The cylinder force can for instance amount to more than 40 tonnes, while the vertical load resting on the elevator is less than 10 tonnes. All assembly elements are individually loaded by this high load, whereby heavy wheel track reinforcements are necessary for attachment to the wheel track. In the existing embodiment this takes place by welding the assembly elements individually to the underside of the wheel track, wherein great specialist efforts are required to ensure alignment.
It is for instance necessary for many bearings to be provided for individual bearing-mounting of each of the outer ends of the diverse components of which the lift can consist. Many assembly operations also have to be performed in this respect for assembly of the vehicle elevator in question. There is moreover a further drawback that the sets of assembly elements are also aligned very precisely, this requiring great professional skill from for instance a welder for the purpose of arranging the assembly elements. It is the case here that each set of bearings for each outer end of the components must be sufficiently heavy to allow (rotation) movements of the components within a full range of movement under the heavy loading thereof. This results in a high degree of wear, since this wear is related to movement distances multiplied by the magnitude of the load.
The present invention has for its object to obviate, or at least reduce, the drawbacks of a configuration according to the known art.